From within the sanitarium

The chain of medical misery apparently goes like this: from ex-mom-in-law (migraine) to me (strep) to ex-dad-in-law (24-hour flu) to Nik. Yes, we have a sick boy-child on our hands, complete with diarrhea and a 102° fever. It's heartbreaking, really, because when he gets hit with something like this, he turns into a red-cheeked little bundle of lethargy, and becomes a complete cuddle-bug. So I spent a goodly amount of time today curled up on the couch with him, watching Conie the Cow or whatever else struck his fancy. Luckily Motrin is doing what it's supposed to, but it's only a temporary fix, I'm afraid. Poor lad. (And unfortunately, this also means that Abbey will be next. Sigh...)

The Plan

All right, I've been postponing this post for long enough. As I said a week or two back, everything is on the verge of being turned on its ear, pending resolution on a few decisions / issues / what-have-you. I think things are relatively close to being finalized at this point, so I can give you The Plan as it currently stands (take a deep breath, because this is going to get complicated):

One of the big issues was the question of day care for Nik in the wake of his dismissal from Crock-a-Gators. Quality day care is damned hard to come by around here in even the best of circumstances, but in this case it was even trickier in that we only needed a two-month stopgap solution (you'll see what I mean by that shortly). Now, Kristi's dad offered to watch him for the month of April since he's not working during that time, which means I'll be kissing his shoes in gratitude for the remainder of my days. So that helped, but it still left May up in the air.

Here's our working solution:

1) Kristi drives out here from Wichita in late April/early May to watch Nik. She will be staying in this house.
2) At that time, I will be moving into my own apartment in Glens Falls, where rafaela will also be staying for the summer (yay!).
3) In early June, Rob, Kristi's boyfriend, will pack and move their collective belongings from Wichita to Chautauqua, NY, where he works every summer. Kristi will meet him there to assist with the unpacking; she may or may not bring Nik with her.
4) Regardless of whether Nik goes with her, Abbey still has school until the third week of June or so, so I will move back into the house to care for her for those few weeks, leaving rafaela to tend to the apartment during that time, seeing her when I can.
5) When Abbey is done with classes, Kristi will pick her (and Nik, if he's still in Lake George) up, and take them to Chautauqua for the summer; I will move back to the apartment.
6) After summer is over, Kristi and Rob will relocate somewhere in the Northeast, possibly in the Amherst, MA area. I will remain in the apartment. The children will stay with them.

Yes, I just said what you think I just said. And no, I don't especially want to discuss it right now, except to say that it was decided after much discussion, that I think this is the best thing for the kids, that I will still be a part of their lives regardless, and that...it's complicated, too complicated to sort out at the moment, in the face of so much change.

And yes, I'm fine. Just wondering what life is going to be like once the dust settles. I guess there's only one way to find out, isn't there?